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Post by Chuck on Jun 3, 2015 6:39:58 GMT -5
A10 Talk blog has Dion as one of five "KNOWN COMMODITIES ABOUT TO BECOME A-10 FAMOUS." Dion Wright (St. Bonaventure) – St. Bonaventure actually led Dayton at the half in last year’s A-10 tournament before falling 75-71. Marcus Posley did Marcus Posley things by posting an impressive 26 points in that one but Wright was right there with him with 24 of his own on 10-11 shooting. As a junior his 13.5 ppg weren’t enough to grab A-10 All-Conference honors but I think a tough Bona team next year will wake people up to just how good this guy is. Fun stat: Wright shot over 60% from the field in 10 of his last 13 contests including a combined 72.5% (on 40 attempts) his final four games of the season. Yo! www.a10talk.com/five-breakout-candidates-next-season-and-the-players-poised-to-go-from-good-to-great/ |
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Post by Chuck on Jun 3, 2015 7:29:15 GMT -5
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Post by class70 on Jun 3, 2015 8:20:30 GMT -5
Dion has been the real deal for us from Day One. I hope he gets the recognition and the championship he deserves in his senior year.
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Post by bbb on Jun 3, 2015 13:06:23 GMT -5
He's improved dramatically each year. Next year - All A-10 first team!
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Post by fjs64 on Jun 3, 2015 14:44:02 GMT -5
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Post by wgt on Jun 3, 2015 18:10:43 GMT -5
Chuck….Thanks for all the great stuff on Dion. Incredible stats for him. Check your PMs.
Dion epitomizes why recruiting is FAR from an exact science. With success in HS & exposure to lots of Div I recruiting all but Bona saw his potential. I would think a LOT of coaches on the West Coast are kicking themselves for not recognizing his talent. He was in their backyard & only far away Bona saw his Div I ability which has flourished in the Enchanted Mts.
His impressive success in the A10 has his parents off the charts proud. Had the privilege of meeting his mom at Bona (at a women’s game) & at the Barclays. She is such a supportive mom & loves Bona for the opportunity they gave her son.
Prior to the start of the 14-15 season Coach Schmidt indicated that Dion would have a target on his back & that he might find it hard with teams focusing on him. As I have said in the past, the nature of Dion’s game makes it tough for teams to strategize on stopping him. “The Worm” has a nose for the ball & looks rim immediately. Can’t say it better than Udo-Ema. “He has an uncanny knack for being around the ball at all times.” “He’s just one of those guys who’s like a glue to the ball.”
Missed seeing Mrs Wright at the Barclays this year. A place where Dion brings his A games. In 2 Barclays games this year he averaged 19.5 ppg & 9 boards. His game against Dayton was masterful. 24 pts on 10-11 shooting, 4-5 TREYS, 3 assists to 1 TO in 40+ mins. Pierre, who normally kills us & eats up Youssou inside, had only 4 pts in 38 mins. Dion shines under the brightest lights.
This year’s target on his back will be even bigger. But that won’t matter to Dion, He will just get it done in the paint. That said I expect some outside game from him this season. He has been cautioned to not take the trey but his 4-5 in the last game against Dayton MAY add that to his repertoire. He ended the year hitting 36% but took only 14. He loves taking them so I expect he will be less hesitant from deep his final season.
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Post by Chuck on Jun 4, 2015 16:57:39 GMT -5
Here was a kid who was hardly recruited......and a coaching staff from Western NY, likes what they see in this California kid, see the potential where others didn't, offer him a D1 opportunity, he took it and ran with it, and made the effort to become one of the best. Kudos to the staff and Dion for achieving this success. Do not receive another D1 scholarship offer and then become a star is an incredible feat. Barry Mungar is the only other Bonnie I can think of that accomplished this. You know we might have another one with Matt Mobley. I think Mobley's situation is different from Dion and Barry. Mobley was a very talented prep player (and has accolades to prove it) who was just over looked. Mobley definitely had D1 talent. On the other hand Dion and Barry added muscle and greatly improved their post game to become D1 players. Should add both are quality defensive players. Barry Mungar is my all time most improved Bonnie player. Depending on outcome of his senior season, Dion has to be in the top 5. As FJS says Schmidt's staff deserves praise in recognizing Dion's talent. I've never seen so many under recruited players (recruited by Schmidt) that became stars or quality players at Power 5 schools. Here is an impressive list: Eli Carter, Maurice Jones, Aaron White, Calvin Newell, Derrick Millinghaus and I'm sure there are others. |
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Post by Chuck on Jun 4, 2015 18:46:51 GMT -5
Dion epitomizes why recruiting is FAR from an exact science. With success in HS & exposure to lots of Div I recruiting all but Bona saw his potential. I would think a LOT of coaches on the West Coast are kicking themselves for not recognizing his talent. He was in their backyard & only far away Bona saw his Div I ability which has flourished in the Enchanted Mts. As I have said in the past, the nature of Dion’s game makes it tough for teams to strategies on stopping him. “The Worm” has a nose for the ball & looks rim immediately. Can’t say it better than Udo-Ema. “He has an uncanny knack for being around the ball at all times.” “He’s just one of those guys who’s like a glue to the ball.” Agree with everything WGT says. I thinks a big part of it is you can't measure the drive, passion and work ethic of a player. I remember a comment about Kyle Alexander "he has all the tools, but does he have the tool box." The Hoop Hype evaluator wondered if Kyle has the intensity, emotion and passion to take his game to a higher level (link below). I think back to Brett Roseboro, who seemed like he had most of the tools, but he just seemed uninterested. Uda-Ema's following comment about Dion is very interesting "“guys want to pigeon-hole positions, and they didn’t know what Dion is, really,” Udo-Ema said. “I think that was to his detriment in recruiting. They’re like, what is he? Is he a 2? He’s not a 2 because he doesn’t shoot it well enough. He’s not a 3 because he doesn’t handle it well enough. His strength is on the post, but he’s too small. That’s what they were thinking." The above comment is very true, but the fact remains as a freshmen where do you play Dion? I remember first time I saw Dion play and wondered what Schmidt saw in Dion. He was a skinny 6'7" kid, who lacked a shot, had questionable ball skills, couldn't take it to the basket, lacked athleticism like Demitrious (who I thought he would be replacing) and he was way too small to play power forward. It has been special to watch Dion develop into one of the best players in the A10. I never would have believed it when I first saw Dion. Like WGT mentioned, Dion has a knack of always being around the ball. The first special trait I noticed with Dion as a sophomore was his uncanny ability to get open in the paint. The Bonnies seemed to pass the ball around and then all of a sudden the pass goes inside to Dion who has an open jump shot. hoopshype.ca/orangeville-prep-recruiting-file/ |
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Post by Hermit on Jun 4, 2015 20:56:38 GMT -5
Dion epitomizes why recruiting is FAR from an exact science. With success in HS & exposure to lots of Div I recruiting all but Bona saw his potential. I would think a LOT of coaches on the West Coast are kicking themselves for not recognizing his talent. He was in their backyard & only far away Bona saw his Div I ability which has flourished in the Enchanted Mts. As I have said in the past, the nature of Dion’s game makes it tough for teams to strategies on stopping him. “The Worm” has a nose for the ball & looks rim immediately. Can’t say it better than Udo-Ema. “He has an uncanny knack for being around the ball at all times.” “He’s just one of those guys who’s like a glue to the ball.” Agree with everything WGT says. I thinks a big part of it is you can't measure the drive, passion and work ethic of a player. I remember a comment about Kyle Alexander "he has all the tools, but does he have the tool box." The Hoop Hype evaluator wondered if Kyle has the intensity, emotion and passion to take his game to a higher level (link below). I think back to Brett Roseboro, who seemed like he had most of the tools, but he just seemed uninterested. Uda-Ema's following comment about Dion is very interesting "“guys want to pigeon-hole positions, and they didn’t know what Dion is, really,” Udo-Ema said. “I think that was to his detriment in recruiting. They’re like, what is he? Is he a 2? He’s not a 2 because he doesn’t shoot it well enough. He’s not a 3 because he doesn’t handle it well enough. His strength is on the post, but he’s too small. That’s what they were thinking." The above comment is very true, but the fact remains as a freshmen where do you play Dion? I remember first time I saw Dion play and wondered what Schmidt saw in Dion. He was a skinny 6'7" kid, who lacked a shot, had questionable ball skills, couldn't take it to the basket, lacked athleticism like Demitrious (who I thought he would be replacing) and he was way too small to play power forward. It has been special to watch Dion develop into one of the best players in the A10. I never would have believed it when I first saw Dion. Like WGT mentioned, Dion has a knack of always being around the ball. The first special trait I noticed with Dion as a sophomore was his uncanny ability to get open in the paint. The Bonnies seemed to pass the ball around and then all of a sudden the pass goes inside to Dion who has an open jump shot. Chuck, don't think these passes happen automatically. They are designed plays, in what many on here say is a "too" complicated Schmidt offense. I saw many early practices where Dion was singled out....for not knowing what to do. He learned it though, didn't he. If you look at most of the Bonnies recruited, they also fit into the .....where should they play ... Question. Dion is small for a "4". Marcus is small for a "2"! Denzel doesn't have the ball skills for a "2" or "3"! Bonnies get players with talent who want to work hard and improve their game. Schmidt fits them into an offense. Schmidt does more with less than any coach in America. |
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